City resources and levels of responsibility
May 31, 2011 — Alameda, CA police officers and firefighters looked on while a man drowned in an apparent suicide attempt, prohibited — by city policy — to rescue him. Approximately 75 beach-goers witnessed the tragic events unfold…
Below is a brief summary:
- Raymond Zack (early fifties), waded — fully clothed — into the ~60°F waters of the San Francisco Bay (from Robert Crown Memorial State Beach) Monday morning. There he remained, neck deep, for about an hour before drowning.
- His stepmother asked a bystander to call 911 shortly after he went into the water, claiming he was suicidal. 1
- Alameda police and firefighters arrived quickly to the scene, however — due to budget cuts that discontinued the Alameda Fire Department’s water rescue program in 2009 — the firefighters were not trained or certified to carry out a land based water rescue. 2
- The United States Coast Guard were called in, but were unable to perform a rescue operation by boat since the waters were too shallow, and the rescue helicopter did not arrive in time from another emergency. 3
The people who witnessed Raymond Zack’s passing must cope with the thoughts that occupied their minds, preventing them from taking action — work regulations, liability concerns, uncertainty surrounding the man’s mental state, the possibility of violent tendencies, thinking they had more time, that someone else was handling it…etc.
As a result of this tragic loss, Alameda’s water rescue policy has been changed 4, and the city of San Jose is currently reviewing their policies as well. 5
Editor’s note: This isn’t the most uplifting Dinner Topic to date, but it certainly raises some interesting points and stimulates intelligent conversation about the topic, which is the function of this website. Every issue and potential hazard can’t be controlled by local government, yet municipalities still make an effort to provide a safe environment for the masses. How much spending on resources is enough? What should government do when the money isn’t there to spend? How much of a responsibility does everyone have in ensuring the safety of an individual when the harm is self-inflicted? Dinner Topics doesn’t have the answers, but it has provided the questions. Discuss at length.
Read on:
- http://rcayao.com/news/police-and-firefighters-watches-as-raymond-zack-drowns/ ↩
- http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/122944013.html ↩
- http://www.insidebayarea.com/alameda/ci_18172320 ↩
- http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/122944013.html ↩
- http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/south_bay&id=8165683 ↩
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